Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is already changing how people research, communicate, and interact, but its biggest impacts on biotech are still to come.

Cradle is a Dutch-Swiss biotech startup founded in 2021 that has developed a web-based software platform leveraging GenAI to accelerate protein design and optimization, aiding scientists in biotechnology R&D. Cradle’s technology integrates AI with wet lab experimentation, doubling the speed of most projects compared to industry benchmarks.

In this episode I talk to Cradle co-founder Elise de Reus to discover how their software platform is putting the ‘tech’ into biotech, and learn how some of the biggest names in pharma R&D are coming to rely on Cradle to accelerate their experimentation and get therapies to patients faster. 

01:30                      A passion for biotech from a young age

03:20                     First experiences in the industry

07:23                      Cradle and its mission

09:08                     Generative AI at Cradle

10:27                      Partnering and collaborations

13:37                      Taking generative AI into the wet lab

14:43                      A techbio company, not a biotech company

17:36                      “Photoshop for proteins”

18:29                      Use case: animal free food

20:17                      Use case: medicines

23:56                      Use case: sustainable materials

25:12                      The Cradle business model

28:17                      Technical challenges

29:48                      Regulatory challenges

31:44                      Where AI will have the greatest impact

33:29                      The most exciting things to come

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To dive deeper into the topic: 

• 12 AI drug discovery companies you should know about
• How AI is shaping clinical research and trials